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Perspectives in Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
Project Graduation -- Maine
During the 1979 commencement period (May 15-June 30) in Maine,
seven of the 12 deaths among teenagers that resulted from driving
under the influence of alcohol occurred in the area of Oxford
Hills.
In response to this loss of life, a school-community coalition from
Oxford Hills developed and implemented a program called "Project
Graduation," a chemical-free graduation celebration, during the
1979-1980 school year. During Oxford Hills' 1980 commencement
period,
there were no fatalities, no alcohol or drug-related injuries, and
no
arrests for driving under the influence of alcohol.
The number of fatalities occurring among 15- to 19-year-old
Maine
residents during the graduation period that involved teenagers
driving
under the influence of alcohol decreased from 12 in 1979 to one in
1984, with an intermittent drop to zero in 1983 (Figure 1). During
this period, the number of high schools participating in Project
Graduation increased from 1 to 129. This statewide diffusion
effort,
stimulated by the Maine Department of Educational and Cultural
Services, Division of Alcohol and Drug Education Services,
constitutes
program adoption in 84.9% of Maine's high schools. In 1984, 79.1%
of
graduating seniors in project sites (68.3% of graduating seniors
statewide) attended chemical-free commencement activities. The
single
fatality reported in 1984 did not occur in a Project Graduation
site.
Analysis of the fatalities in question for teens residing in areas
where the program was in place, compared with teens who did not
reside
in those areas, revealed a significant difference (Mantel-Haenszel,
p
= 0.03) favoring teens exposed to Project Graduation (Table 1).
Reported by C Mowatt, J Isaly, M Thayer, Maine Div of Alcohol and
Drug
Education Svcs, Dept of Educational and Cultural Svcs, Augusta, E
Miller, Div of Health Education, Bureau of Health, Maine Dept of
Human
Svcs; J Fell, National Center for Statistics and Analysis, National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration; B Veal, Florida Informed
Parents, Tallahassee; Program Svcs and Development Br, Div of
Health
Education, Center for Health Promotion and Education, CDC. Editorial Note
Editorial Note: Nationally, teenagers have the highest rate of
drinking drivers involved in fatal crashes for every 100 million
vehicular miles driven--a rate of 2.9, compared with an average
rate
of 1.1 for all age groups. The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) estimates that, in 1984, 4,200 teenagers
died
in alcohol-related crashes.
Although it is not possible to attribute the cause of the
downward
trend in Maine teen drinking and driving fatalities to the adoption
of
Project Graduation, evidence is sufficient to encourage public
health
support for the continued promotion of this important program and
for
more extensive efforts to determine those elements that can make
the
project more effective. On the basis of the results in Maine, the
NHTSA has supported several national conferences to stimulate
promotion of Project Graduation. In June 1984, 38 states had at
least
one Project Graduation site, and in May 1985, 19 states had
designated
a coordinator at the state level. In places where it is
undertaken,
Project Graduation is much more than an event that occurs on
graduation night. It is a communitywide planning process that
strives
to create a caring, supportive environment and more open
communication
between youths and adults. At most sites, a team of teachers,
students, and parents designs the chemical-free celebration and a
variety of fund-raising activities. School officials, drug
specialists, and community and business leaders provide guidance,
support, and money for the celebration. Newspapers and radio and
television stations work to increase community awareness of the
issues. The result can be a powerful and positive force within the
community and its institutions. For example, during the 1985
graduation period, four counties in the Tampa Bay, Florida, area
are
planning chemical-free graduation celebrations. At least 24 high
schools will participate.
Project Graduation emphasizes prudent decision-making about
drinking, drug taking, and driving and endeavors to establish
chemical-free celebrations as the norm. Details on how to
implement
the program are available from: Project Graduation, National
Highway
Traffic and Safety Administration, NTS-01, 400 7th Street,
Northwest,
Washington, D.C. 20590.
Disclaimer
All MMWR HTML documents published before January 1993 are electronic conversions from ASCII text into HTML. This conversion may have resulted in character translation or format errors in the HTML version. Users should not rely on this HTML document, but are referred to the original MMWR paper copy for the official text, figures, and tables. An original paper copy of this issue can be obtained from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO), Washington, DC 20402-9371; telephone: (202) 512-1800. Contact GPO for current prices. **Questions or messages regarding errors in formatting should be addressed to mmwrq@cdc.gov. Page converted: 08/05/98
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